Illusions
by Tsubasagirl
Summary: Fresh out of high school and in college, Nenna arrives as the recently built Kondou University Almost immediately, she befriends a group of guys who share something in common-something dark-but they're not the only ones who stand out. As Nenna continues her studies, she continues to harbor a dark secret of her own.
1. Boundaries

**Hey guys! This is a new spin on things!**

_**Authors Note:**_

_**This story takes place on an island off the shores of America. The world has a steady growth rate of Rasetsu around the world and it's becoming a problem as doctors still can't figure out how to cure them. Kondou Isami therefore started the school, Kondou University to both harbor Rasetsu from around the world and to provide excelling academic programs to both humans and Rasetsu. It's also to help Rasetsu in controlling themselves and such. **_

_**The world is aware of the Rasetsu existence...though they aren't fond of them.**_

_**The language here is English, so suffixes like -san, -kun, sensei etc will not be used, and they'll be using first names. This is a college so ages range from 18-any age really, mainly mid 20s. **_

**Hope you guys will enjoy this story! I hope to finish this one as well!**

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><p>CHAPTER 1<p>

Boundaries

"Here it is, Kondou University," the driver said as the taxi staggered to a stop. Nenna took out her earbuds and stuffed them in her jacket. She nodded to the driver and got out. "Do you need help with your bags?" He asked, leaning out of the window as she went to the trunk.

"Nah, I got it. Thanks though," she threw him barely a smile before the trunk flung open. Grabbing her suitcase, she hefted it out of the car and slammed the trunk down. Handing the money to the driver, she watched as the old taxi crawled down the hill before disappearing into the forest.

She looked up at the large building that stood on the other side of a stone bridge. This was Kondou University. Nenna, or Jenna, Denton was fresh out of high school and she put off her search for colleges until the last minute. If you asked her and her parents how they found a college at the last minute they would say it was a miracle. What kind of school would allow year-round applications at an affordable cost? It was standing right in front of her. And it was also located off the shores of America in the Pacific.

It was known for it's excellent academic program, and our rather apathetic heroine had no idea what she wanted to master in. Oh well. Nenna was just glad it was out in the middle of nowhere—not that she wanted to get away from her parents...it was because of something else.

She walked down the empty bridge. Her flight was delayed, so technically the first day started yesterday. The journey was rather long, she had to fly down to California from Virginia, and _then_ take a boat that took a day to get to the island. Nenna was in an awfully tired—and grumpy mood.

Reaching a fountain, she pulled out her paper and squinted at the map under the fading light. The girls' dorm was…"Ah, _konnichiwa_!" She picked up her head to see a man walk up to her. What was that...Japanese?

The man had black hair and a wrinkled face, probably from smiling too much. He was dressed nicely in a suit with a cup of...something in his hand. "Came in late I see," he chuckled.

"Yeah," she tried not to yawn. He looked at the map in her hand. "Do you need some help?"

She nodded, blinking her tiredness away furiously, failing in the process...and looking like an idiot. "Where's the girls' dorm?"

"Ahh, that's on the other side of the campus...sometimes I wonder what the builders were thinking of when designing the place," he muttered. "Here, I'll show you."

Taking a better look at the building, it was a couple stories high with an archway underneath, allowing people to walk into a courtyard covered in grass, plants and benches. A couple students were in small groups, chatting amongst each other. "So, what's your name?" He asked.

"Jenna, but people call me Nenna."

"It's nice to meet you, I'm Kondou Isami!" He greeted.

"Oh! You must be the dean then…" she said slowly. Again, it was a long day.

"Right. Welcome to Kondou University then!" He smiled. This man had some fatherly aura about him, really, he seemed _that_ nice. "Was the trip here okay?"

Don't get her started on it. "It was long," she managed to say, trying her best to not sound grumpy. "I just want to find my bed and sleep."

He chuckled, nodding his head. "It must've been."

They arrived at the girls' dorm. It was quiet as they walked down a dimly lit hall. "I believe you have another roommate. I wish I could've given you a tour of the campus...but it's getting late," he apologized. He knocked on the door and a girl's head popped out.

Light brown eyes greeted Nenna's. The girl sported braids in her grayish brown hair, and it looked like she was about to sleep, considering her sleepy expression. "Yes?"

"Forgive me," Kondou gestured to Nenna, "but this is your roommate. She came in late." Nenna nodded at the girl, giving her a little smile.

"Oh!" She said, with a bit more life to her voice. "Yeah, come on in. I'm Sen, what's your name?" The door swung open as Nenna walked inside. Kondou took his leave, closing the door behind him.

"It's Nenna." She replied, glancing at the bare side of the room. Sen's side had small posters and pictures of her and others tacked on a corkboard, but it was still pretty bare. She moved to her side and started to unpack her things, as in lazily tossing things in drawers. After setting up her bed, she flopped onto the mattress with a loud _floof! _Her dirty blonde hair splayed across the pillow with her face buried in it.

"Tired huh?" Sen giggled as she sat at her desk, cramming papers into a binder.

Nenna let out a muffled response. As much as she wanted to get to know about her roommate, she was completely exhausted. Too lazy to change or anything. Hopefully Sen wouldn't think of her as rude or anything. Burying herself in the mountain of blankets, she pulled the hood over her head and closed her eyes.

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><p>Opening her eyes, she groggily sat up. She hadn't moved much since she crashed, though her hair was in all sorts of tangles and knots. Nenna felt around her pillow, trying to find her phone as the hood lazily fell off her head. Finding said phone, she looked at the time and groaned loudly, slumping her shoulders.<p>

It was ten o'clock. _Ten_. She slept through her first class! That explained the fact why Sen wasn't in the room. Digging out her schedule from her pocket, she read the rest of it. She had thirty minutes before the next one...astronomy.

Nenna changed at a turtle's pace, putting on some skinny jeans and a sweater that screamed, 'I'm not even trying'. After brushing the life out of her hair, she picked up her bag and crinkled schedule and grabbed the key on her nightstand that had: DORM KEY 226 on it, and shoved it in her pocket. Sen probably left it. It was a hunch.

Skipping breakfast altogether, Nenna scrambled, rather clumsily, to find her class. Maps didn't do her any favors, as her eyes were still trying to get out sleepy mode.

Getting to class went by in a blur. After asking countless people, she was turned to a general area of where the class would be. Finding the right class was an answered prayer as she flopped down into a seat just before the professor walked in...followed by a guy who ran past him at ultrasonic speeds. Panting, he went up the steps and basically mimicked Nenna's oh-so graceful flop into a seat. The one right next to her.

Astronomy went by in a blur, with Nenna nearly falling asleep every few minutes. She wrote a few words out of the entire lecture, and was probably gonna kick herself when a test would come up...and she would have nothing to go by.

But then the sound of her stomach roaring to life snapped her out of her daze completely...followed by a held back chuckle next to her. Her heart beat faster out of embarrassment and she looked at the guy. "Only you heard that, right?" She whispered.

He nodded, covering his mouth. "Not sure…!" Her eyes finally greeted his blue-green ones. Sporting messy brown hair, he was dressed in a hoodie and jeans. Nothing really crazy, but she would admit his smile was dorky.

"I skipped breakfast," she muttered, putting an arm over her stomach to muffle any more sounds...and there were plenty more.

"Obviously. You want a muffin or something? I stockpiled food last night," he said, nudging his bag, which was sitting in the empty chair.

She could only nod as she watched him pull out a banana nut muffin. "Thanks," she whispered and started digging out pieces of it and shoveling it in her mouth. Covering her mouth, she said, "I'm Nenna."

"Heisuke." He grinned.

Eventually class was dismissed, with Nenna begging silently to get a water bottle. She wolfed down the muffin within a few minutes. "I don't suppose you know where to get a bottle of water."

"Did you sleep through the entire tour?" He joked.

"I just got here last night. My flight was delayed," she replied matter-of-factly. She swallowed, feeling the muffin that had caked her throat. "And then I slept through my first class." She sighed.

He gave her an apologetic grin. "Sorry, I didn't know. Anyways, there's a store nearby that's always open. C'mon, I'll show you." He nodded his head in the direction and Nenna followed. "So where did you come from?"  
>"Virginia. You?"<p>

"Japan."

"Japan?" She widened her eyes. "Like...Tokyo or something?" It wasn't like she met people who came from halfway across the world every day!

"Kyoto." When he received a blank stare, he added, "It's west of Tokyo. Personally I don't like the bustling cities and the crowds...are huge." Nenna noted his height...she was a few inches shorter than him, and she stood at 5 feet. She held up her hand against his head in gesture to his height and he shook his head and exasperated. "I'm not _that_ short!" It was as if he read her mind.

"You're short," she replied smugly.

"You're short_er_!"

"Pretty short for a guy though."

He groaned and threw his head back. "Why do I even try?!"

Reaching the shop that smelled like coffee and cleaned floors, she got three bottles of water. Yes, three. Cramming two of them in her bag, she took a huge swig from one, sucking out half of its life in a few gulps. She could still feel the cakey muffin in the back of her throat, but she wanted to save it.

"So what do you have next?" Heisuke asked, adjusting his backpack strap.

"Uhh, calc." You could say she went crazy and got a lot of math credits in high school, and all she needed now was one more in college. She wasn't looking forward to doing math without her parents nagging her and breathing down her neck to get it done. Whoops.

"Ah, seriously? I sucked at math in high school… I have English next. Maybe you'll meet some of my other friends."

"What, did you and your friends plan to go to the same college?" She arched a brow. It was rare to hear that, since her friends ranged from community college to fancy universities. He shrugged.

"Yeah, that." His eyes seemed distant before flickering back to normal. The two walked out of the semi-crowded shop. "Well," he grinned, "I'll see you later I guess!"

"Yep," she admitted to herself that she wouldn't mind seeing him again, since he was the only person she came into contact with―and held a conversation that lasted more than three syllables.

* * *

><p>She found her next class easier than the previous one. And this was her last class for the day...which meant probably more sleeping. She got her first assignment from astronomy, but a nap was on the top of her priority list.<p>

As usual, class went by slowly. Her hand had a mind of its own and scrawled down the notes, being legible for once. Her brain was slowly starting to work, getting stuck a couple times, but she managed. She missed her friends elbowing her because she was in their writing space, or whenever they would ask her for the answers, which she wouldn't give. Math was the only class she overachieved in, and everything else was just at a regular pace, which was ironic because she was horrible at math in middle school. At least she wouldn't have to worry about taking more math for the next few years here.

Class ended as quickly as it came, and her hunger was on a steady slope to being active again. Gathering her things―she managed to go through a second water bottle―she stood. A tap on the shoulder made her turn around. A guy on the row above her had his book spine resting on his shoulder. He wore a button up shirt, untucked. His auburn hair didn't mimic her clothes, as it was messy. A pair of honey gold eyes sat behind this one strand of hair that hung his face, irritating the snot out of the blonde.

"Yes?" She asked.

"Did you get the last part of the lecture? I kinda zoned off." He gave her a grin. Now on the same platform as she was, she looked up at him. Including Heisuke, everyone towered over her. This guy was no exception.

"Yeah," she snapped out of her reverie and started to head for the door at the top of the auditorium-like seating. The tall man obviously didn't see that coming and rushed up to her, stepping in her way.

"So...you won't?"

She shook her head. "Afraid not."

"C'mon," he sighed, still grinning. "It's not like a super handsome guy, such as myself, comes up and talks to you." He studied her unamused expression and quickly added, "Joking, just joking. You remind me of my friend, Saito."

"I need to get going," Nenna replied. Lie number one.

"_Please?_"

Just when things couldn't get any worse...her stomach gurgled. The tall man arched a brow and a smile curled his lips. That muffin wasn't enough. She fumed and looked up at the ceiling, shifting her weight on one leg, concocting an idea. The store Heisuke showed her only had candy and junk food; she wanted a _meal_. "If you don't have any other classes today, you could show me where I can get actual _food_."

"Ahh, that's no problem! There's a lot of shops in the town. I'm Sanosuke, by the way."

"Nenna...what's with all the Japanese?" She muttered, only to realize that that was supposed to be in a thought bubble. Sano nodded at her as they finally made it out of class.

"It's an international school, so people from all over the world come here."

The blonde thought for a moment, "I don't suppose you know some kid named 'Heisuke'." Wouldn't it be a coincidence that he would know him―

"You met the shrimp? Yeah I know him, for a while actually." He held up his hand next to Nenna to compare heights with said kid.

Nenna rolled her eyes and slapped his hand away gently. "I've already been through this conversation. So there's no restaurants on campus?" The trek down the hill and into the distant town didn't sound so thrilling.

"I take it you're a freshman, huh?"

"Yes. What are you? Junior...senior?"

"Senior. You scared yet?" He chuckled. Nenna still wasn't in a joking mode. If you would retry in the next 3-5 business days, then maybe she would lighten up. Sano was nice, in her point of view. He seemed really cheerful and easygoing. Maybe his attitude can make hers a little better for the rest of the day.

As of now, the girl had exceeded her goals for the entire week: make at least _one_ friend. She had the potential of getting two.

"Hey, Nenna!" Her attention was torn away when she heard a familiar voice to her left. Turning to look, she saw Heisuke wave at her with two other guys in his wake. In no time, a little group was formed on the pathway. "Ahh, you already met Sano then huh?"

"Don't keep us from the girl, Heisuke," one man mused. The two others were taller than Heisuke, one sporting purple hair and deep blue, impassive eyes, with an apathetic expression to compliment the rest of his aura. The oceans in his eyes flickered as she and him caught each other staring before dimming down to a placid sea.

"Yeah, yeah, sorry." Heisuke said with no meaning in those words, brushing his friend off with a dismissive wave of his hand. Gesturing to Nenna and then to the others, he said, "This is Nenna, and these two are Hajime and Souji."

The one named Souji nearly met Sano in height, again another towering figure to add to her collection. She scrutinized those emerald hues that glinted, holding a similar smirk he had plastered on his face. Both of these men, including Heisuke, emitted something...off. Something very small tipped what she deemed normal, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

"_Hajimemashite_." The reddish-brown head responded, throwing her a wink. Saito, however, said nothing. Getting a confused look from Nenna, he added, "Nice to meet you."

"Oh," the girl nodded. She wanted to say―no, scratch that. She didn't want to say anything until she had a plate of food in front of her. Nonchalantly putting an arm over her stomach, she felt it growl under her shirt and whimpered mentally.

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><p>She pushed back the empty plate of food on the table and stretch. The food coma was setting in. She and the others decided to go to a restaurant in town, catching a shuttle because the walk would be too long. "Oh! Here, a deal's a deal." She rifled through her back and took out the notes from class, handing them to Sano.<p>

"Thank you," he winked, getting a gagging expression from Heisuke.

"Don't you even think about flirting with her, _old man_."

"I'm not _that_ old, kid," he retorted and flipped to the last section of her notes. He scrutinized the neat handwriting and arched a brow, flipping the paper over to see if there was anything on the back. "Hey, where's the rest of the notes?"

"Oh, that was it. He was just talking about something about his life." Nenna pulled on an ever-so sly grin. The table went still and Souji and Heisuke broke the silence with laughter. Sano put the papers down and stared. Resting an elbow on the booth, he turned to Nenna, who just smiled innocently at him. "You tricked me."

"I didn't _lie_. You said the 'last part of the notes' and those are it!" She explained, pointing at the last few lines on the page. Her smile softened, "But thanks for the food."

"Ahh I like her already!" Souji cheered. "She's as devious as me."

Sano squeezed the bridge of his nose. "I wouldn't go to _that_ extent."

The food did help her a bit in waking up, but it still felt like she had weights in her body. Her gazed shifted over to Hajime, who still didn't say anything. It looked like he wasn't even capable of smiling. As their gazes locked, he was the first to look away. She still couldn't figure him out.

As they headed out of the restaurant, Souji inquired, "So, are you thinking of any clubs to join?"

That never came across her mind at all, just the part where she needed to get accepted into _some _college and emerge with _some_ degree. "Never thought about it."

"Well, just a tip, you should check out the kendo club! We're all in it."

"What's that?"

The four looked at her for a moment, probably remembering that she was from America, and had no idea what kendo was. "It's basically where you spar one another with bamboo swords. It's fun." He grinned. The idea of smacking each other with bamboo swords sounded fun―to watch. Nenna wasn't even good at using foam swords with her friends in a store...before they got kicked out. Let's just say she would make a fool out of herself.

"No thanks, maybe to watch―but not join." She replied.

"Well you should just drop by one day!" Heisuke insisted.

When they got back to campus, they showed her where the club was held, and mentioned that all the clubs will be open to new members soon, so she could join one if she wanted to. Her eyes flickered over to the horizon with the sparkling ocean that stretched over yonder for miles. She completely forgot that she was on an _island_.

"Hey, you there." A voice came from behind her. She turned and immediately, her heart staggered. A man with blonde hair and _blood red _eyes approached her. That looked strange to her already, but there was something about him too! Dangerous―powerful. Not to mention his voice was incredibly low. Standing over her, he had this kind of presence that would feel like it could feel a room. With one hand in his pocket and another hand holding a bag.

"You're new here," the man said. Nenna didn't say anything, since she was still trying to find the deepest corner of her brain to get away from this guy. He looked her over, "I would say be careful...but it seems that people should be wary around _you_."

"Weirdo," she exclaimed. "Wh―why would you say that to someone?!" She huffed and gripped her backpack strap and briskly walked around him.

"Hmm…" the stranger watched as the girl walked away. The hues in his eyes glinted with curiosity.

"You didn't have to scare her off," a female voice came from the side of him.

"Don't play dumb, you could sense something from her from the start, didn't you?"

Sen walked up to him, her arms folded as she gave him a glare. "Yeah, I did, but you still didn't have to confront her so quickly!" Sighing, she watched as Nenna walked off to the girls' dorm. "Honestly, Chikage, you have no idea how to talk to girls in _general_."

The blonde closed his eyes, as if trying to concentrate on something. "You talk too much, you know?" Opening his eyes, he commented, "But there _is_ something off about her."

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><p><strong>Thanks for reading! This was brewing in my mind and I just wanted to finally put it down on paper! What do you think? :D Let me know in your reviews! And a question: who would you want to see paired with Nenna? I think I have an idea now that I typed the chapter, but your thoughts are more than welcome!<strong>

_**Apologies for the ridiculously long chapter.**_

**-Jen**


	2. Monster

** Thanks for your reviews! I'm more than happy that you guys liked the first chapter and the concept itself! Since I haven't planned out this story as far, it's safe to say that my updates won't be often like the last few chapters of Dance of Swords. Example of my 2 week absence :'D (sorry about that)**

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><p>CHAPTER 2<p>

Monster

The next day, Nenna didn't have classes. Instead of cramming all her classes in one day, she spread them out. Now a quarter more awake than yesterday, she managed to do a decent job of personalizing her side of the dorm. There was a desk next to her bed where she put her laptop and notebooks. She rearranged her drawers to make it look a bit more decent than yesterday, and she hastily put on a collage of her and her friends over the years of high school on the wall.

Sen was sitting at her desk with a pencil end in her mouth as she continued to type furiously on her laptop. Nenna sat crosslegged on her bed as she rifled through the small boxes at the bottom of her luggage, probably filled with some trinkets from home. Looking up, she inquired, "Why didn't you wake me up yesterday?" It wasn't at all accusational, just out of curiosity.

Her dorm mate pivoted in her rolly chair, and gave her an apologetic grin. "Sorry―I tried to! Honest! But you were knocked out! You refused to budge―kinda like a rock."

Nenna nodded at her understandingly. Her mom had the same problem with her back home. Some days she would be completely out of it...others she would wake up hours before her plethora of alarm clocks would go off. Sen scooted her chair towards Nenna and rested her arms on the back of the chair.

"So," she started, "how was your first day?"

"It went...surprisingly well. I couldn't believe it, I met so many people." Nenna's hazel eyes flickered to the box sitting in her lap. Inside the small parcel was a handmade locket that one of her friends made. She smiled at the memory before returning to Sen. "They're nice...pretty dorky too." Dorkier than her old friends.

A smile curled the brunette's lips. "That's good! Glad it went well." She glanced out the window and then back at Nenna. "You seem livelier today," she said thoughtfully.

Nenna shrugged. "I have my days." She was still tired; she could still feel the weights inside her, but the intensity was lessened by a quarter. Closing the box, she reached over to her nightstand to set it down. "I'm going to take a wild guess; you're from Japan, aren't you?"

"Yeah," she giggled. "How did you know? Did my name give it away?"

"That and I just assumed. All of the people I met yesterday were coincidentally from Japan."

"It's so weird, I know!" She nodded in agreement.

In speaking of weird...her thoughts went back to yesterday after the guys showed her where the kendo club was. That guy! Her lips fell into a frown as she reminisced the meeting.

Sen arched a brow, studying her facial expression. "What's wrong?" Nenna blinked and looked at her new friend, shaking away her frown. It wasn't _that_ big of a deal, since she had a bunch of creeps back at her old school, and then one who wouldn't leave her alone.

"It's nothing." It wasn't enough to put this guy on the people-she-hated list. She only met the guy once. Nenna tilted her head back and let gravity pull her down, flopping onto the covers. Stretching out her arms, she stared at the ceiling, letting out a thoughtful sigh as if she were thinking of something brilliant. Which, in turn, was nothing important.

"Hey, you wanna go to town and...do something?" Sen asked. Nenna's eyes flickered to her, a sudden spark of interest lighting her hues. "Sure; got nothing else to do."

"Great! Have you been there yet?" Rolling back to her laptop, she shut it off and stood.

"Yeah, went there yesterday." Nenna slowly rose and raked her fingers through her hair. "We went to a restaurant."

"_We_?"

"―the people I met yesterday. He wanted my notes and I was hungry―"

"_He_? You didn't tell me _that_." She grinned at her. "Was he cute?"

_Now _Nenna started to feel comfortable. It seemed like she was talking with one of her other friends from back home. Nenna shrugged, "I wasn't focusing on looks really," she trailed off to recollect her memories. Scanning them briefly, she broke her attention and affirmed, "Yeah, I didn't have much time to look."

"Mhm," she giggled and snatched her purse off the corner of her desk. Nenna did her utmost best to not roll her eyes. After readjusting her overall appearance, she grabbed her bag and the two headed out.

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><p>"So you're from the other side of the country!" Sen nodded in fascination. The two found a small cafe, in which they claimed a table and sat there for what it seemed like eons. The ice broke long ago during the shuttle ride to the town, and now they were trying to figure each other out like some puzzle. "You miss your parents? Or are you one of those people who don't care?"<p>

Tracing the edge of her glass, Nenna looked up, "I'm not homesick. Not in the least―It's not like I hate them or anything," she said quickly, "ahh, it's hard to explain." Nenna scrutinized the fact that she didn't feel homesick at all look like she wanted to get out of her parents' hair. She didn't want to get away from them at all―but she didn't have much of a choice. Giving up on trying to defend her statement, she took a sudden interest of the napkin holder on the table.

Sen tilted her head, trying to understand her vague response. After some thought, the girl let it go. "Alright, alright."

"What about you?" Nenna's conversation skills, at their finest.

"I guess I'm the same. I'm not homesick, or anything. I do this a lot―travel without my parents." Her light brown eyes glinted for a moment, as if it were hiding away something. She couldn't shake this feeling that there was something that was being kept from her, but she wasn't sure what.

Nenna nodded and glanced out the window. _I might as well ask now…_ "Hey, do you know this person?"

"Hmm?"

She brought her eyes back and added, "I met him yesterday. Blonde hair," she held up a few strands in comparison, "and...red eyes. Does he wear contacts or something? It's creepy."

Sen pursed her lips, indicating that she _did_ know someone who fit that description. "Really. Yeah―I know him, for a while actually. We surprisingly went to the same college in the end." It sounded forced. "Chikage Kazama."

She let the name sit in her mind for a while. "Do all of you guys know each other?" She chuckled halfheartedly. "Anyways, yeah, he talked to me a bit yesterday. God, he was being such a weirdo," she scoffed and folded her arms, leaning back in her chair.

"What did he say to you? He can be such a jerk."

"He didn't say anything mean," she affirmed, "he was just saying things...things that didn't make sense. Like I should be careful, or something like that."

Sen leaned forward and propped her head up with her hands. "Now that you mention it, that's pretty weird, even for him. Usually he's all haughty and stuck up," she rolled her eyes, "I honestly don't know what's up with him."

They sat there in silence, and the dead noise was gnawing at Nenna, causing her to shift in her seat. Her laggy mind strolled through her thoughts, thinking of something else to say.

"So, what did you do in high school?" Sen's voice snapped her out of her trance.

A half smile curled Nenna's lips. Taking a sip from her drink, the blonde responded, "Nothing really. I was on the swim team, but that's pretty much it." The familiar scent of chlorine came back to visit. The sound of crashing waves rung in her ears as the swimmer raced down their lanes. Out of those four years, swimming was the most enjoyable.

"Oh! Why didn't you say so? We have a pool on campus! It's really nice." Her friend grinned. However, it turned into a frown as Nenna shook her head.

"Nah...I haven't swam in a while," she shrugged, "I'm not into swimming now." Her eyes lowered, and stared at the beads of water trickling down the glass.

"Hmm, that's too bad. It's a small campus, so not a lot of people use it." A pause. "Or maybe we can visit your friends in the kendo club?" She smiled followed by a giggle. Nenna arched a brow, wondering if this was some way to make her nervous-as it was a method her friends used if they thought Nenna liked someone...it was a waste of their time.

"Sure I guess," was her reply.

Sen sighed and scowled at her. "You're no fun." She got up and tilted her head, "C'mon! We're wasting daylight."

The two headed out and hopped on a shuttle. The ride went by quickly as Sen continued to ask her questions, where when Nenna tried to ask her something, she would try to put her back in the light.

The girls arrived at the kendo club a little bit in the evening. Inside, guys wearing funny clothes were whacking each other with bamboo swords. Nenna knew it was more than that, but it's what it looked like in her eyes. The helmets looked pretty funny too, but then again, they weren't using foam swords.

Nenna didn't even try to decipher who was who and just continued to watch the pairs spar. Within a few minutes, practice was over and guys and girls walked off, talking to their friends as they got their stuff together.

A cheery voice greeted the two. Nenna half smiled at the familiar face as Heisuke walked up to them. His hair was damp from the sweat, probably steaming in kendo garb. Resting the bamboo sword on his shoulder, another hand holding his head gear, he said, "I don't suppose you're joining?"

"Nah," she shook her head. "She was the one who wanted to go," she nodded at Sen. Sen rolled her eyes, grinning, "You make it sound like a bad thing!"

One by one, the pack grew. To Nenna's surprise, not really, Sen knew the guys at a very young age, but she moved by the time she was in middle school. Nenna concluded that everyone knew everyone, and she was the only one standing outside the bubble. Tuning out of the group's conversation, her eyes glazed over the room as more members left at a snail's pace...and then she found the same pair of red eyes. She tensed up at the sight of Chikage, and tried her best not to scowl at him.

He simply looked at her with a second-long interest before going about his business, collecting his things and heading out of the room, accompanied with two other men, who looked like they wouldn't be students. One was hulking with muscles and the other had an intricate tattoo crawling up his arm. Both of them as well shared apathetic glances at her before staring onward, and leaving the scene.

_Weird. _

"So you like swimming?" Sano's voice took her back to reality. Nenna blinked and pulled off a tight smile. She told Sen she wasn't interested in swimming again, why couldn't she just leave it at that?

Her frown was neutralized by Sano's smile. "Yeah, I _did_. But not anymore." She didn't want them to try to convince her to do it again… she couldn't. She didn't trust herself when it came to swimming.

"Ah, just wait until you see the pool though! How about I show you?" Okita asked, only to be given looks from Sano and Heisuke reading: You're flirting _now_? By now, Nenna expected Saito to say nothing, and her theory was about to be proven right until, "If we want to show her now, we need to hurry up. The pool closes soon." His voice was low with a little hint of interest in everything that was going on around him.

With Saito's approval, it seemed that the group couldn't be knocked off their pillar, while Nenna tried to bring them back down. The guys asked the two to wait a while as they got their things together and changed out of their uniforms. Nenna stood with an uncomfortable expression. Shifting her weight endlessly to one foot and back, Sen couldn't help but notice her obvious discomfort. "Something wrong?"

"Nothing." Her eyes couldn't meet Sen's at the moment. _Stop being such a wuss! _

When they came back, Nenna's trip to the pool arrived. The pool was located in the same building she was in, only it was further down to the back. Nenna masked her uneasiness while cruising on the conversations, but she couldn't stop her heart from dropping to her stomach as the scent of chlorine hit her senses.

"Just wait, Nenna, the place is amazing!" Heisuke grinned as he swung the black door wide open.

Humidity and chlorine enveloped her, as if greeting an old friend, but she regarded in the recesses of her mind as a double edged blade. They all stepped inside, and the guys started to go on about how new it was. Sen was enjoying herself, making Nenna jealous of her new friend.

Unlike her old school, it was well lit. From the deck tiles to the pool itself, it was as they said: fancy. It was like the pool was untouched since it was built. It was a well lit room with bay windows sitting where the diving tank was, which had three diving boards. Six lanes and bleachers aligned the wall, adjacent to the doors.

"So, what do you think?" Okita nudged Nenna out of her train of thought. "Pretty cool huh?" It occurred to her that her party was already circling around the perimeter, and she just stopped the moment she stepped inside.

A shiver ran up her spine, despite the interior being so warm and humid. "Yeah. Cool. Like I said," she said too quickly, "not interested in swimming." Scrunching her toes, she picked at a nail occasionally so it wouldn't look like she was dying to leave the place.

First there was a pause. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. If I weren't, I wouldn't be here right now." She replied coolly. After a few minutes of antagonizing silence, the rest came around. Sen smiled at Nenna, and before she could ask that question, Nenna answered: "Yeah, it's nice." Her hues flickered to the placid water, and glared at it. "I'm gonna head back now." Without giving much thought, she spun on her heels and dismissed herself from the rest of the group and briskly exited the pool area. The cooler air nipped through her clothes and the hairs on the back of her neck stood. Reaching the halfway mark of getting out of here, she heard the pool doors creak open and a pair of footsteps going after her. She debated to walk faster, but making someone chase her down seemed childish.

Keeping at her normal pace, she arrived at the doors, but was stopped by Sen's voice. "Hey, what's up?"

Now was _not_ the time, she thought. "I'm just tired, that's all." She bit her tongue when she looked at the unconvinced expression.

"You _sure_? You looked like you really wanted to get out of there." Her friend's prodding was tempting her to just say it, but she took a hold of it and refused to let go. Nenna sighed and pushed open the door, letting the warm air send away the goosebumps. By now, the sun was nearly gone, and was being chased away by a dark sky.

It didn't take much for Nenna to realize that Sen was still following her. "You don't need to worry; I'm fine."

"It's okay if you don't want to tell me, but don't keep it to yourself you know." Sen sighed, admitting defeat. Nenna nodded, hoping that she didn't offend the girl with her sudden mood swing.

The two headed through the courtyard, slipping between two buildings as a shortcut. Seeing that the sun had already set, Nenna just wanted to be inside the dorm. Still, something in the pit of her stomach sat uncomfortably. She couldn't shake off this looming cloud, and she didn't know the cause of it.

"Look," Nenna stepped in front of Sen, facing her, "I want to tell you, really―but I can't. It's nothing," she paused, "_bad_, but...not right now." Sen nodded, smiling slightly. She slipped her hands in her pockets, "Don't worry. I know how you feel."

_Trust me, you don't_. Nenna smiled, but she couldn't get rid of the bitterness. As she spun around, she collided into another person, who, again, was much taller than her. "Sorry," she quickly added as she stepped back to pass him.

The same uneasiness reached from the pit of her stomach and gripped her heart. The man had his head hanging low, his shoulders slumped, and his body leaning forward ever-so slightly. A painfully dead silence overcame the three as the one lifted his head, and his snow-white hair fell away from his face.

Nenna instantly felt tiny as his blood red eyes burned bullet holes in hers. "Nenna...run…" Sen murmured. Her legs wouldn't respond, it was the fact that she wasn't even thinking about running. Instead, terrified curiosity overcame her.

"Blood…" the ominous man said.

"W-what did he say?" Nenna choked as she glanced at Sen. "Is he a―

"Give me _blood_!" He sneered and he lunged for the two. The two gasped and jumped back as his attempt. He took a step forward, his breath was ragged as if he hadn't had anything to drink for ages. That's what made her nervous.

"What do we do?!" She yelled over at Sen. Why is a Rasetsu doing all the way out here?! Yes, those things. A mistake created in the name of science. Scientists pursued the idea of trying to live longer and become stronger: a superhuman. The experiments started with great results, but the professionals looked over the side effects; the insanity, lust for blood, and eventually resulting into a pile of ash.

They've been around for a while, but they started to become a problem as the populations grew. Some states back home started to set up boundaries, including a couple countries around the world. Nenna was fortunate to live a rather normal life without the interference of the Rasetsu, but she had heard about accidents caused by them over the news.

"We need to get it away from the dorms, away from people―get his attention!"

"Why _me_?!" Her rebuttals were cut short as the demon lurched towards her. Nenna took a couple more steps back, "Okay―where to?"

"Follow me!" With that, the girl took off. Nenna huffed and scrambled to make her feet respond to her commands. Dreading the sound of those footsteps that rushed behind her, she powered on and tried her best to keep up with Sen.

As her surroundings started to change, she could see the fountain of the courtyard come into view. The lights inside the fountain just turned on, and the light posts flickered on one-by-one.

"Hey!" Sen immediately stopped and spun around, causing Nenna to veer over to her left and jump behind the girl. "Stop right there, or you'll get what's coming!" She ordered.

_What the hell is she thinking? _

"Heh?" He tilted his head, giving a toothy smile with dilating eyes. Letting out a crazed chuckle, he broke into a sprint with one hand reached out for Sen. Hazel eyes widened and didn't think a moment sooner. Grabbing her friend's arm, she harshly yanked it back, causing the demon to miss by a couple inches. Stumbling, she cursed, "Are you nuts?! Do you want your head ripped off? These guys are powerful!"

"I know," she replied calmly, taking her arm back. "But I'm stronger."

"What?" she joked, "Do you have a gun or something then?" The girl contemplated on asking more, but the was something more important, more dangerous, standing ahead.

Sen refused to look at her. She stood defensively in front of Nenna as if she had done this before. "He's...a student here."

The hulking figure with beady red eyes and white hair was a _student_? She gaped at him as he continued to stand there, as if waiting for something to happen. Did Sen encounter this guy before? Was Kondou even aware that he admitted a Rasetsu in his school?! Nenna started to panic after realizing that they couldn't hurt him to save their necks―_if_ they could hurt him that is.

"Watch it!" She yelled as he suddenly lunged for them again. Nenna braced for impact, but instead just stared at the sight before her.

Sen, a girl roughly around her height, which wasn't that tall, was holding back the demon. With both hands on his shoulders, he snarled at her, cackling as the bloodlust continued sending him in spirals of insanity. "Give me blood! I _need_ it!"

Backing away, Nenna cried out, "Sen! A-are you okay?!"

"I'm fine," she replied, albeit it was somewhat forced. "Stay... back!" She exclaimed, sending her foot to the guy's chest. The blow sent him back a few feet away, making his shoes skid across the cement. With confused eyes, the guy ran a hand over his chest as if it inflicted some damage, but he straightened himself out within seconds.

"Are...are you―"

"One of _them_? No," she glanced over her shoulder, meeting Nenna's eyes with a surprising color of gold. "I'm the real deal," she winked and gave her the thumbs up. Nenna watched in fascination as the ends of her brown hair slowly grew white. The color crawled up her hair like rain drops running down a window, only backwards. Nenna heard of these people before...only a handful of the entire population were _pureblood_ demons. Just like the Rasetsu, they were blessed with inhuman strength and agility, and there were no catches. These purebloods were socially acceptable to say the least.

Shaking herself out of her trance, Nenna asked, "What are we supposed to do with him? Keep him busy _all _night?"

Their conversation was cut short as the demon ran around Sen and charged at Nenna, realizing that he was no match for the pureblood.

"Nenna!" Sen screamed as she whipped around, catching the sight of the demon clawing at her.

The girl didn't see it coming, nor realizing that his dull, human nails managed to cut her skin across her collarbone. She yelped as she felt her own skin splitting and scrambled backward. Her sudden movements didn't correlate with her sluggish mind, as she fell backwards a few feet from the fountain. Just as the Rasetsu had his sights on the trickling red, he was thrown back as Sen snatched the collar of his shirt and yanked him back.

"Are you alright?! Oh, god! I'm _so_ sorry―I should've paid attention!" She panicked.

"No, no, you're fine, both of us... didn't...see it coming…" the brute force knocked the wind out of her, causing her a series of coughs as she sat up. Her fingers ghosted over the small streamers of blood as the demon got back on his feet again. Getting back up with Sen's help, Nenna pressed the top of her shirt to blot out the blood.

His nose flared as the scent of blood wafted into his personal space. Without much thought, he lunged for the source, but was knocked down by Sen. "Leave her alone!" With a hand on his chest, she kept him nailed to the ground as he cursed at her, swiping his arms at her, but failing to smack her away.

Nenna' eyes flickered to the stirring water behind her. The soft splashing lulled her into a calm state despite the circumstance. Reaching over, her fingers interrupted the streamers of water that cascaded down the multiple tiers. She sighed and brushed the water softly across the scratches going along her skin.

"There he his…!" a voice shouted from behind. Nenna jumped at the sound, immediately relieved as she saw Sano point at the Rasetsu. Okita and Saito charged after the demon, grabbing him by both arms. He growled and screamed his displeasure as he was hefted to his feet, being held back by both guys.

The white on Sen's hair receded and was replaced with her brown hair as she spoke, "Geez you guys, what took you?" she grinned as if nothing happened.

"Sorry," Okita replied as he slapped some silver cuffs on the Rasetsu. Almost immediately his rage simmered. "He busted out of Dr. Sannan's place and we had to go chase him down."

"Maybe if you screamed a bit louder, we would've gotten to…" Heisuke's eyes flickered to Nenna, and immediately exclaimed, "Oh! Nenna! God, are...are you okay?" He paused and sniffed, "Is that blood?"

An eerie silence overcame everyone. Saito stiffened a bit, while Okita swore under his breath. Sano, who looked more composed of the four, emitted a bit of uneasiness as he glanced at the blood stains on her shirt. Nenna shifted uncomfortably under their gazes until Sen broke the silence. "Don't worry you guys, she's fine! Just a scratch."

"Y-yeah," she added, "I just need a little bandaid." She could still feel his nails pierce her skin, and three burning trails across her collarbone. The bleeding was small and reduced to little beads forming on her skin.

"Let's get him back to Dr. Sannan's clinic," Okita abruptly said.

"Wait," Nenna sighed. Looking up at the four males, she asked slowly, "are _you_…?"

It took a moment for one of them to respond. Sano tilted his head, smiling bitterly at her. "We can talk about that once we get inside."

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><p><strong>I wanna thank: <strong>**Jinxes****, ****smileyface209****, ****GlaceonGirl2****, ****feliciatcb****, ****xXAnimeLoverpotterhead4lifeXx**** , ****Puppylove7****, ****scorpia1029****, ****Guest1995, ****Trufflerabbit13, ****Maro75****, and ****Soraja for your reviews for the kick-off of this story!**

**Sorry for the long wait you guys! I ran out of steam halfway through this chapter and I just got it back :'D I hope this was alright for you guys, and let me know if you have any questions, comments etc in your**_** review**_**! **

**I'll be back with the next chapter, hopefully soon. **

**-Jen**


	3. Silver

**Sorry for making you guys wait so long! I keep on procrastinating...well, the good thing is, I wrote down the plot for the next few chapters, so hopefully it won't take me eons to update the story.**

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><p>CHAPTER 3<p>

Silver

The guy had settled down and was just resting in one of the beds in the infirmary after taking something. Nenna eyed him carefully in his peaceful state. His white hair had long since vanished.

Once they arrived to the infirmary, a man, presumably Dr. Sannan, gave the student some medicine to calm his rage. He apologized to Sen and Nenna that he had been so careless and not watched him close enough, but all Nenna wanted to do was find some answers. Turning her eyes to the man, she watched him rifle through a cabinet and pulled out some peroxide and bandaids.

Dr. Sannan smiled through his glasses as he pulled up a seat next to Nenna. "Here, let's see how bad it is," he gestured to one of the scratches that weren't covered by her shirt. Everyone else was lingering around inside the room, talking softly amongst themselves as if not to wake the monster back up.

"Oh," she waved her hand dismissively, "it's fine. You don't need to worry about it."

"You never know. Let me see," he pressed. As much as Nenna wanted to refuse, she let out a sigh of defeat and swiped her hair to one side, tugging the collar of the shirt away from the scratches.

The man blinked and set his things down. Leaning it a bit closer, he ghosted his fingers along the healed wounds. He squinted at the scars in disbelief and leaned back. The room went still as they waited for his answer. "Interesting...already healed," he murmured.

Swallowing thickly under his close observation, she let the shirt cover the little scars and stared at the bottle of peroxide.

"You okay, Nenna?" Heisuke asked. His voice snapped her out of her reverie, making her shoulders jump slightly. Turning on her stool, she nodded. He genuinely looked worried, as if he had done something horrible.

"I'm fine. See, I _told_ you," she gestured to the scars hidden under her shirt, "just a scratch."

"You sure? I could've sworn you were bleeding."

"_Heisuke_," Sano rumbled. Thumping the shorter one's head, he let out a cool sigh. "You don't need to freak her out even more."

"About that," she paused, "do you mind telling me _what_ in the world just happened? This school has _Rasetsu _enrolled here! Does the dean know about this?!"

Dr. Sannan adjusted his glasses as he gazed blankly upon her. "I guess I should go from the start." All eyes were on him. "A while back, Isami was noticing all of the discrimination against the Rasetsu, and the growing problems as a result. There was an awfully large population of Rasetsu in Japan, and it was starting to become a problem as murders increased within months, and as you know, there was no, and still is, no cure for them, just a medicine that reduced the bloodlust. Isami then decided to build a school to harbor Rasetsu from around the world, to try to keep them safe and the rest of the world safe.

This college also specializes in teaching students how to control themselves." His eyes glazed over to the student. "We haven't had something like this in a while, so we're doing pretty good so far."

The more the thought about it, the more it made sense. The idea of a school to help Rasetsu was a good idea. Maybe it would show the world that they're as civilized as everyone else.

_They should just have a school of monsters while they're at it. _Looking up at her friends, she spoke, "So you guys are Rasetsu?"

Souji nodded. "If you don't want to associate yourself with us anymore, it's understandable," he responded curtly, tipping off his imaginary hat to her. Nenna scrunched her brows. He didn't need to be so sour about it.

"Hey, I don't care what you are. I'm not going to ditch you because your _monsters_." Who would be that shallow? Getting bitter at just the thought of it, she shoved the thoughts away in the back of her mind. But as old thoughts left, new questions manifested and bounced inside her head. Were they born like this? Did they take that medicine? If so, how long were they like this? Did they ever lose control?

The room grew still again, and Dr. Sannan straightened up on his stool. "I have him under control. Thank you for your help." He said, giving out a somewhat bitter smile. The group nodded and took their leave. As they spilled out into the hall, a hand touched Nenna's shoulder. Looking back to see Sen's worried expression, she lifted a brow. "Is there something wrong?"

"Are you _sure _you're okay? That scratch looked deep." All imploring eyes were on her, making the girl take a step back. This was too close for comfort. Stress was crawling up her back and dug its claws into her head.

"I'm fine―just drop it alright?" She huffed. Silence washed over them all, making Nenna instantly regret for snapping at her. But there was something she couldn't tell them, maybe later, but not now. No need to introduce new monsters. "Let's just...get to bed. I have classes tomorrow."

They all agreed that it was time they retire for the night. As much fun as it was being jumped by Rasetsu, Nenna needed her sleep. It had been a long day to say the least.

Once the two got to their room, the hazel eyed girl switched into a comfy hoodie and flopped on her bed, greeting her pillow with her face. Curling up into the sheets, she screwed her eyes shut and blocked out every noise, and every thought.

The next few days went by in a blur. The girl hadn't remembered what was assigned for homework until she pulled out the sheet, which was stuffed in the abyss known as her bag. Thank goodness it was finished.

By now, her scars had completely vanished. It was as if her scuffle with that Rasetsu never existed. But Sen was observant, as she kept on asking all about it. She was poking and shoving at her personal bubble, and it was so abused that it was bound to explode if she poked at the subject once more.

During lunch, they ate at the cafeteria. Nenna had to admit, the food wasn't as bad as high school's. Staring apathetically at the leftover fries in her box, she wondered why she got so much food. She had three bottles of water, a muffin from Heisuke, and some gum from Sano. Coincidentally, the two found Heisuke, Sano, Souji and Hajime at a table, Sen wanted to invade the table, and Nenna didn't stop her.

Taking a seat next to Hajime, she said, "You don't have to look so mad you know. If you want me to move then―"

"It's fine." He replied with his eyes focused on his meal. Nenna pursed her lips and started to eat in silence. Apparently her side of the table was the nonexistent one as the other side had a million one conversations she couldn't keep up with.

Eating away at her food, she swallowed and asked the quiet boy next to her, "Did your teachers swamp you with homework yet?"

Setting his fork down, he replied, "I don't see the problem. If they want to challenge us, then so be it."

Curling in her lips, she nodded once as she slouched over her food. So much for talking. A loud scream parallel to her jerked her head up. Heisuke was reaching out for something Sano was holding in his hand, while the other was pushing the smaller boy's head away. "You...can buy...more!" Heisuke grunted as he tried to evade the elder's hand.

"But I don't wanna go up there! Besides," he took a bit out of the cookie, "you owe me."

"Bastard, get your own food!" He sniped. Arching a brow, the girl reached over the table and snatched the injured cookie. Both guys seemed stunned that she would join in. Giving the two a glance, she tossed the treat to Heisuke and hastily wiped the crumbs away. "Just because you give me muffins and keep me from starving," she explained.

A wide grin curled the boy's lips as he held the cookie victoriously in front of Sano's face. "At least someone is on my side!"

The brick-red haired man rolled his eyes, "Now that you helped him, he won't leave you alone you know."

"I know what I've gotten myself in," she replied, folding her eyes and throwing her hair over her shoulder.

Sen smiled and pointed at her with her fork, "Looks like someone has gotten some sleep."

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing," she replied. "It's just that over the past few days you've gotten more...lively. You're actually talking!" A giggle was followed.

Pursing her lips, Nenna disregarded her comment. "I just figured out my sleep schedule, that's all." Sitting back in her chair, she bowed out of the conversation and stared at the water bottle. Being enrolled in a school full of Rasetsu didn't seem any different from any other school. She ignored the fact that she was around people who had the potential of starting a blood bath, and possibly infesting the entire island since so many were enrolled. What she couldn't understand was why the world hated this species so much. They were literally like everyone else, excluding blood lust and immense strength. These guys seemed the most typical batch you could find. They picked on each other and lived their lives without much thought. Deep in the corners of her mind, she had a jealousy for them.

"Hey," Okita's voice broke the constant berating between Heisuke and Sano. All eyes turned to him. "Why don't we all go to the beach? I'm getting bored just staying cooped up in campus." He said boredly as he stirred his food on his plate.

Hazel eyes flashed but quickly dimmed as everyone, minus her and Saito, nodded in agreement. "It's not that far, so why not?" Heisuke added.

Shrinking away from the conversation, Nenna shook her head and smiled apologetically, though bitterness lurked underneath. "I have to pass. I might sleep through my alarm clock." The four looked at each other quizzically, shrugging their shoulders as they made a conclusion to their unheard conversation.

"Why not?" Sen asked, "I heard the beach here is so pretty! You don't have to swim or anything," she added.

Just the sound of the ocean made her uneasy. Shaking her head, she collected her things and stood up, making the chair rasp harshly against the floor. "Hope you guys have fun." Securing her backpack over her shoulder, she briskly walked to a trashcan and tossed the remaining food before exiting. Walking through the semi-sun lit corridor, she heard the door open behind her, followed by footsteps and a hand to her shoulder.

Whipping her head around, she grabbed the hand and tossed it away from her. Asking icily, "What do you want?" She held back the daggers in her eyes once she saw Heisuke's surprised expression. "Oh―sorry." She muttered.

"What's wrong? Sen says you've been acting weird―and not the part when you're cheery." He said quickly.

Taking a step back, she avoided his gaze. _He can't know. _"What do you mean? I'm fine."

"C'mon Nenna," Heisuke pressed. His imploring blue-green eyes made her take another step back. "Whenever we talk about the pool, or swimming in general, you suddenly leave. What's up?" Pausing, he asked, "Are you afraid of water?"

Before he could start rambling on apologizing for not knowing, she held up a hand, "It's not that. I just don't mix well with it."

"That doesn't make sense," Heisuke commented. Like Sen, he was the next person to be prodding at her personal bubble, only with pins and needles. Clenching her fist, she kept herself from yelling at him. "Just drop it, okay?"

"Why are you being so defensive about this? Is it because we're...one of _them_?"

Shaking her head profusely, she replied, "No! That's not it! You guys are cool―I gotta get going." The girl wasn't getting a good grip of her cool. By now, she was throwing every excuse to see if it would stick. Not to mention, the day was getting closer. Spinning on her heels, she started off, but he shot out his hand and grabbed her arm. Giving a worried glance at him, he furrowed his brows and took a step forward, not letting go of her. "Nenna...your eyes are silver…"

Shit. Ripping her arm away she briskly walked away from him, ignoring his shouts and pleas to come back. Whipping out her phone, she rubbed furiously at the screen to get a good reflection. Sure enough, glints of silver flashed under the sun as she headed out onto the courtyard. This was bad. The days she always dreaded were approaching, _quickly_. Maybe hiding under the sheets and covering the windows was a good idea, though Sen would get curious, therefore creating another problem.

After putting enough distance between them and her, she slowed her pace and continued to stare at her phone, refusing to look up for even a second. Within each second, her iris' gained deeper pigments of silver, like water colors blotting onto a piece of paper.

It wasn't the first time she snapped at someone to keep her distance from them. Over her years of high school, her friends called her 'Moon-girl' once in a while since whenever she would act like this... it would always be near a full moon. On the days of a complete one, she wouldn't go to school.

Upon nearing her dorm building, a deep voice made her head whip to the side. "Pretty pathetic you want to hide." Kazama stood behind her with glinting red eyes. As usual, his apathetic gaze seemed to radiate nothing else as he approached her within two steps.

Rubbing her eyes and keeping her line of vision away from him, she replied, "What do you want?"

"Nothing," a low chuckle filled the space between them, "you had this secret for what? All your life, and you _still_ don't know how to cope with it."

Taking in a quick breath, she hissed at him, "I have no idea what you're talking about." Glaring hazel daggers at him wasn't cutting it, as he dismissed them with a cocky smirk. Tilting his head to the side, his smirk vanished as quick as it came. All seriousness was in his voice, "You don't need to play dumb. I figured out who you are, siren."

She blinked, and brought up her silver orbs to meet his. The girl suddenly found it hard to breathe, as her heart was suddenly lodged in her throat. What did he just―

"You heard me. I know what you are. The silver eyes, all the water you drink...I bet you sing lovely, and I'm sure you excel in swimming." Though there was no hint of compliment to his tone. Nenna's mind was a mess, as she scrambled to think how she could've slipped. Anything that gave out the slightest hint...that she wasn't normal.

Yes. The girl was a siren, the mythological creature who was said to lure sailors to their doom with their captivating songs. Her eyes would turn into a shade of silver as the full moon would arrive, warning her that the dangerous nights were approaching. You could say she would be 'moonstruck' as the full moon hung in the sky. Like how it would attract the tides, she would be drawn to the water as the great powers of the moon would send her back into her ancestors' mindset. Sing and kill.

She had managed to kill three people, something that would haunt her. "You going to tell someone now?" She arched a brow as a chill ran up her spine.

The blonde in front of her placed his hands in his pockets, suddenly uninterested in the whole subject. "No. I see no point as this place is full of fake demons. You'd fit in like the rest." With that line, he kicked himself to her last few nerves, and he was tap dancing vigorously on them.

"I'm not like them!" She took another step forward, "Unlike them, I can't stop myself. I completely black out―how did you figure this out?"

"Hmpf, purebloods age slowly. I've done lots of travelling long before I enrolled here. I met people like you."

"So...if you don't like Rasetsu...why are you here?"

He paused. "I just wanted to get away from most dogs as I could without isolating myself. I could say the same for you; you have less people to kill in an island all the way out here." The way he said it made it sound like she killed more than three people.

"I'm not doing it on purpose!" Her rage was slowly bubbling to the top as her silver eyes flashed menacingly at him. Kazama only sighed as his eyes turned a shade softer. It was enough to make it look like he actually cared.

"Don't get so worked up about it. I'm just saying that hiding this isn't a smart move. Tell _someone_. Maybe that's why you have a hard time controlling it, you don't want to get caught."

"Why are you telling me this? It's almost," she paused, "nice."

"Just consider it as advice. Nothing more." Kazama fixed his eyes on something else before turning around, not even waving half-heartedly at her. Staring at him quizzically, his words echoed in her ears once more before she went inside.

Upon entering her room, she tossed her bag unceremoniously on the chair and sat on her bed with her head hanging forward. Now what? As much as she didn't want to admit it, the arrogant blonde was right. She couldn't keep this secret forever. Obviously _he_ wasn't bothered by the fact that she was mythological killer.

What made the others different?

Glancing at her reflection in a mirror parallel of her, she scowled at her silver eyes. She hated them. They were always a reminder that she was different, and that she was dangerous. Including the fact that sirens had gone into hiding as time went on, so she wouldn't know who to go for help. She tried too many times to figure things out on her own, so she gave up.

Sighing loudly, she fell back on her bed.

* * *

><p><strong>Well, at least one person knows why she always acts weirdly about beaches and pools. <strong>

**Thanks for the reviews for chapter 2! Hope no one forgot about this story since it's been a month since the last update. Don't worry, I'm working on it! Got any ideas for some chapters? Go ahead and leave it in your review! I'm sure I can add it into the story since I haven't developed it completely! **

**I hoped you enjoyed this chapter! And I'll see you guys with the next chapter soon. **

**-Jen**


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